Worcester class cruiser
Encyclopedia
The Worcester class was a class of light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
s used by the United States Navy, laid down in 1945 and commissioned in 1948-49. They and their contemporaries the heavy cruiser
Heavy cruiser
The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range, high speed and an armament of naval guns roughly 203mm calibre . The heavy cruiser can be seen as a lineage of ship design from 1915 until 1945, although the term 'heavy cruiser' only came into formal use in 1930...
s were the last all-gun cruisers built for the US Navy. Ten ships were planned for this class, but only two ( and ) were completed.
Although technically light cruisers because they carried 6 in (152.4 mm) guns, they were in fact among the largest cruisers ever built, being longer and displacing more than the heavy cruiser
Heavy cruiser
The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range, high speed and an armament of naval guns roughly 203mm calibre . The heavy cruiser can be seen as a lineage of ship design from 1915 until 1945, although the term 'heavy cruiser' only came into formal use in 1930...
s of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Their main battery layout was quite distinctive in that they carried used twin rather than triple turrets, unlike the previous , , and light cruisers. Aside from the fact that the Worcesters main battery consisted of 6 in (152.4 mm) rather than 5 in (127 mm) guns, the layout was identical to the much smaller light cruisers, carrying 12 guns in six turrets, three forward and three aft, with only turrets 3 and 4 superfiring.
Both ships were decommissioned in 1958, the last conventional light cruisers to serve in the fleet, and scrapped in the early 1970's.